With almost R$5 billion allocated to parties through the Electoral Fund in 2026, political campaigns operate a chain of suppliers that goes far beyond traditional card printers. The expansion of digital advertising, the strengthening of social networks as the main arena of political dispute and the regulation of the use of Artificial Intelligence by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) opened space for businesses specialized in content production, network management, audiovisual and technology.
For André Maciel, Market Intelligence analyst at Sebrae, elections function as a market with high financial turnover and strong seasonal demand. According to him, the ban on corporate donations decentralized hiring and created an environment with many opportunities for micro and small companies (MSEs).
“Campaign resources are no longer concentrated solely on large agencies. This change pulverized demand and created a highly favorable scenario for MSEs, which have the agility and leaner costs to serve local candidates”, he states.
Paulo Loiola founded the marketing agency Baselab | Photo: Disclosure
From the saint to Reels
When political analyst Paulo Loiola founded Baselab, a marketing and political consultancy agency, in 2016, the scenario for electoral campaigns was different. “Ten years ago you had a much smaller percentage of internet users, people with cell phones and time spent on social networks. The way to reach people has become increasingly important in digital”, he says.
According to him, the change altered not only the communication channels, but also the format of the messages. Long text lost space to short videos, real-time interactions and content designed specifically for digital platforms.
The professionals who grew the most were the videographer, who accompanies the candidate with the cell phone, the social media, the video editor and the writer focused on Reels. Before, production was entirely focused on TV and graphic material; Today the most sought after services are paid traffic management, scripts for digital video and editing video.
Paulo Loiola, entrepreneur
According to the Territorial Sector Observatory, Sebrae’s Competitiveness Intelligence service, spending on advertising on social media has grown drastically in recent election cycles, jumping from 2.6% of the entire budget declared in 2018 to more than 6% in 2022, while proportional spending on radio, TV and sound cars has decreased.
With increasingly larger digital campaign centers, demands have also increased. This is what Anelise Hott reveals, who coordinates the digital communication of three pre-candidates for deputy. “How many candidates with millions of followers don’t win elections. They need to have numbers, consistency, presence. Nobody wins overnight”, says she, who has been working in electoral campaigns for 10 years.
André Maciel, Market Intelligence analyst at Sebrae | Photo: Disclosure
Cybersecurity and documentation
The arrival of Artificial Intelligence has brought a new level of technical and legal complexity to campaigns. AI tools are already used for text review, communication planning, content analysis and production, and support for the production of campaign materials.
In addition to making the process easier, technology has also created a new business niche, according to André Maciel. As the TSE requires explicit identification of synthetic content and provides punishments for misleading deepfakes, demands for cybersecurity services, digital reputation monitoring and content auditing have grown. “Companies focused on digital security have gained a lot of space. They are now required to offer auditing and rapid response against the misuse and defamatory use of AI against candidates”, he states.
The election period can represent a relevant portion of the annual revenue of self-employed professionals and small businesses. “There is a huge volume of small candidates injecting money into local micro and small businesses. Furthermore, the mandatory accounting compliance turns the hiring of accountants and auditors into a practically guaranteed demand at the end of the campaign”, says Maciel.
According to him, professionals thinking about entering this field need to pay attention to a series of bureaucracies. “The most critical preparation is the rigorous regularization of tax and accounting documentation. The TSE and the Federal Revenue carry out systematic cross-checking of bank data, requiring small businesses and MEIs to obligatorily issue the Electronic Services Invoice (NFS-e) in a standardized way”, says the analyst.
Support from Sebrae
Sebrae offers support to entrepreneurs in various areas of management and training in strategic areas during the electoral period, as in the examples below:
- Digital marketing and social networks: lasting 7 hours, the free course shows how to segment your audience; create relevant content and understand the basis of advertisements and sponsored campaigns.
- Instagram Day: course for those who want to stand out in digital and win customers with practical and accessible strategies, with a presentation of the platform’s main features in favor of their brand, real examples and lots of useful content applicable in everyday life.
- Lights, Camera and Conversion: teaches you how to use videos strategically to showcase your work, attract more customers and increase sales.
Search for other solutions on the Sebrae Portal or contact us via the customer service line 0800 570 0800.
Source: www.agenciasebrae.com.br
